


blessing in disguise

by Gakume



Category: Winner (Band), iKON (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Comedy, Drama, M/M, Romance, basically jinhwan in a dress, historical!AU, joseon era, some sexual content and implied content along the story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-24
Updated: 2017-06-28
Packaged: 2018-11-18 08:58:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11287968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gakume/pseuds/Gakume
Summary: In the era of Joseon Kim Jinhwan is a male disguised as a princess who had been kept away from the public's eye for almost all his life. It's only when he decides to rebel against his father's words that he saw the world outside. What will happen when things soon start to take a turn, though, when he's faced with different people in various situations?a blessing in disguise; idiom ;An apparent misfortune that eventually has good results.





	1. — prologue ;

_"But isn’t it sad, cruel even, for a child to mature ahead of his time?”_  
  
  
;

  
“Mother?” A faint voice broke the silence, little feet padding across the wooden floor filled the room instead as the small child approached the woman sitting all alone with her body slumped forward; it was evident to the eye, she was unstable, disoriented with her brown orbs holding an empty gaze. Those small feet stopped, a hand reaching to her for attention. “Mother?” Again, in case she failed to listen to the initial call but to no avail. “It’s me.” That, this time around, seemed to work for the woman soon turned her gaze towards the child by her side and the once empty eyes were now lit with hope – something the smaller thought had been long gone from the mother’s eyes. “Baby..” Her weak voice finally spoke, sore almost due to her extensive silence – talking wasn’t an activity she took part in for quite some time now. Now, her hands were clinging to the child’s small dress as she sobbed softly to the garment, holding as if at any given chance the latter would vanish from her grasp.  
  
It was both refreshing and confusing, seeing how the woman changed quickly upon having the child appear before her, seemingly the one she had been craving to see when in all reality it was all an illusion. Yes, the effects were showing positive results but at what price? When a child cradles their mother in their arms like a fragile toddler, stroking the disheveled locks of hair in reassurance. How come a child, becomes the parent of their own parent themselves?  
  
“It’s okay, mother.” The kid’s voice was soothing, attempting to relax the woman in his arms as they sat on the floor, short arms keeping the other from falling apart. “I’ll _never_ leave again.”

;

 

 

 

If you asked Jinhwan what led him to this point, he’d say it was his own stupidity. Why? Because he was blessed with curiosity more than brains, therefore inevitably guiding him to the point where he was caught by five guards awaiting his arrival after he jumped down from the fence of the palace’s grounds — so much for stealth skills.  
  
“Didn’t I tell you not to leave the palace?” Silence. “How many times do I have to repeat myself?” Bam, a hand slammed onto the table’s surface right after the king’s loud voice echoing in the room which didn’t fail at making Jinhwan’s small body flinch in surprise at the harsh tone directed at him in a severe scolding sense – he probably deserved it too. “I--” He started with an attempt to reply but was cut short when his father’s voice interrupted him in the process. “Don’t answer me!” And the smaller could feel his body shrink and cave into itself as a response to the king’s command. Ah, if only he wasn’t caught, he should’ve been more careful stepping out of the palace’s grounds. For now he planned on wordlessly listening to his father’s lecture without any objection.  
  
Eventually, Jinhwan was banned from stepping out of the palace grounds – not that he usually was allowed to begin with but now sneaking outside the walls would be a lot harder than it was up till now. “He locked me in here for twenty one years, I go out for one hour and he loses his mind.” It left his lips with an annoyed grunt, sulking to himself before a quiet ‘ouch’ left his lips when the strands of his hair were tugged rather harshly. “He’s your father, I’m sure your well being is his top priority.” The woman’s voice – Jihye – came from behind him and he only made a face while she brushed the long strands of light brown hair. “Listen to him, princess.” Once again, the handmaiden tried to reassure Jinhwan but it did nothing other than make him frown harder than before. _Ah, so frustrating_. He remained silent until she finished brushing his hair and left the room after reading the atmosphere – the sour expression on Jinhwan’s face was too obvious to ignore.  
  
Hell. That’s what the palace was for him. Well, maybe he is exaggerating but right now it definitely felt like so — as if he was a caged animal.  
  
Ever since he was small he was never allowed to go outside and honestly during those times, the palace was big enough for a child to explore. As time went by and he grew up, the palace became dull so it was only natural for him to be curious and want to see the outside world – beyond the walls that caged him for years, seemingly formidable and unbreakable; who knew all it took was simply climbing over. Due to his experience in sneaking out he had his own path from between the trees and towards the bustling city center. No no, he shouldn’t be thinking about it now — it’s forbidden now and there’s not a chance he’ll be allowed to escape once again for the nth time, or is there?  
  
When morning came, it was another day for adventure.“ Princess–” The handmaiden who came in wasn’t able to finish the sentence when a hand tugged her way too suddenly into the room. “Hayoung, give me your clothes.” Before she could reject, Jinhwan already started undressing the female while still in his nightgown. “Wait–! You can’t! If the king hears about this..–” She was almost completely undressed by Jinhwan’s quick hands, swiftly removing her clothes. “Don’t worry I won’t be caught this time, I promise.” Or at least he was going to try, but she doesn’t need to know that right? “Cover for me, okay?” Now fully dressed in a much simpler hanbok than his own, Jinhwan left the room with a mischievous smile on his lips and a hurried wave.  
  
Yes, Kim Jinhwan, male, twenty one years old, one hundred and sixty five centimeters and fifty five kilograms is in fact — a _princess_.

 

 


	2. 001

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After being caught the second time, Jinhwan knows no bounderies and attempts again – with the intention of seeing a very special someone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Terms I'll explain now because I'm not sure if everyone knows:
> 
> *Eunuch – a man who has been castrated, especially (in the past) one employed to guard the women's living areas at an oriental court. (makes them more loyal that way.)  
> **Confucianism – a system of philosophical and ethical teachings founded by Confucius and developed by Mencius. (talks about manners and education etc, eunuchs had to take confucianism exam once a month.)  
> ***Joegori – the upper part of the Hanbok, what you put over your chest.

It was a beautiful day indeed; birds were chirping, the weather was nice and although the sun was a bit too strong for one’s liking the cool breeze compensated for that fact, truly a nice da—  
  
“You were caught _again_ , _weren’t_ you?”  
  
And there it goes from nice to absolutely shitty with the kind help of the male who came to crash Jinhwan’s party – a very lonely one, too. “Shut up, go away.” Even with his eyes closed, the smaller male could tell the other was hovering over him due to the sudden dark hue under his shut lids. God, he just wanted to sulk silently without any interruption but of course Lee Seunghoon was going to disturb just that. Jinhwan had been doing perfectly fine lying on the grass on his own under the warm rays of the sun, soaking up all those vitamins onto his fair skin.  
  
“And you _just_ got lectured yesterday.” He continued despite Jinhwan’s very clear vocal disapproval. “You’re one to live on the edge.” Now his voice sounded nearer and the smaller male assumed the much taller one took a seat right by where he rested across the green ground. “Don’t you have anything else better to do? Something like, I don’t know, not being here?” It came out rather snobbish coming from him but oh well, Seunghoon could handle it. “Eunuch things and all that.. Eunuch stuff–”  
  
Truth to be told is that he actually liked the young eunuch – although older than Jinhwan by a year or two – but the boy had the worst timing, if it was punchlines and lame jokes that didn’t fit the mood at all. Honestly, Jinhwan wasn’t supposed to be too close to the servants of palace but since the smaller boy had nothing better to do than roam around, forming friendship with a few servants in his home was inevitable.  
  
Thinking back on it, their first meeting wasn’t  too long ago — two or three years ago the chief eunuch instructed Seunghoon to follow the younger male around and entertain him due to Jinhwan’s habit to get under everyone’s skin when he was bored and interfere with everyone’s work.  
  
At first the eunuch was awkward around him while his own carefree and friendly personality helped to mend the gap between the two until Seunghoon eventually warmed up to him as he accompanied him. But of course, as they grew up the eunuch had duties to fulfill for that was indeed the reason why he was brought there in the first place.  
  
Although he was curious why Seunghoon became a eunuch, Jinhwan never asked – few were the people who willingly did so. Either way, ever since then they both became quite close that even if Jinhwan was indeed of the royal family – the smaller didn’t mind when it came to honorifics between them two.  
  
“Confucianism exam.” Seunghoon answered and rested his arms on his knees, staring at the body lying so pleasantly in the sun. “Looks like you’re stuck with me here today. All day. No way out.” Then, he waited patiently for a reaction — three, two, one– “Ugh!” A very annoyed and loud groan left Jinhwan’s lips who was now kicking the ground under him and giving it punches with his small fists; stupid guards! Who the hell goes on patrol at broad daylight?! Well, it made sense they would after his little clash with the king yesterday so that was probably far away from being a smart move, not that he’d ever admit so out loud; especially not in front of the eunuch beside him who only seemed to be basking in the joy and amusement upon seeing him throw a fit.  
  
Rolling onto his stomach, Jinhwan’s head rested over his arms as he opened his eyes to look at Seunghoon. “What did the king say? Lectured you again?” The latter asked and instantly got a sour expression from the younger male. “I batted my eyelashes so hard at those guards I think I’m becoming an eyelid cripple.” A snort came from the eunuch at the the remark, listening as Jinhwan continued. “Basically, I bullshitted my way out of it with my overflowing charm, of course.” Ah, makes sense; it wasn’t a surprise – the princess was indeed pretty, having most of the guards easily fooled by simply feigning innocence.  
  
“Speaking of cripples, haven’t seen Mino around.” At that, the both of them seemed to be amused and exchanged entertained grins at one another when the older of the both was  mentioned; Mino was a eunuch as well. “He’s on kitchen duty so you should be careful with what you put in your mouth today.” Honestly, who’s the idiot who put _him_ of all people in the kitchen? Lethal decision.  
  
They continued chatting casually, mostly making fun of one another until– “Kim. Jin. Hee!” An elder’s female voice caught them off guard before a flying rubber shoe came flying their way – which Jinhwan managed to dodge at the very last moment. “That’s my cue–” The small male lifted himself up, brushing his hanbok in attempt to clean it before bowing his head when the woman approached. “Hello, teache–” The smack on his head stung more than usual; god, he really hated being hit by a wooden fan. “Are you going to keep on slacking? Tsk. What kind of lady are you?” Ha, if you ignore the fact he’s actually _a man_ , that is. The rambling didn’t stop at that; instead, the same old lady kept complaining about Jinhwan’s behavior and his tendency to run away and disappear when he was supposed to be attending his weekly lessons.

“I’m sor–” Bam, another smack had him flinching before he could finish his words. He was in trouble, per usual. If only Seunghoon had helped him get away with it but that boy fled the moment that shoe cut through the air between them. With friends like these, who needs enemies, really.

 

  
  
After spending most of his morning between lessons which he was too scared to try and sneak out of – his teacher would definitely not hesitate to throw her other shoe at him if he dared to try; however, now he was all on his own once again which meant only one thing in Jinhwan’s book — sneak out. However, it came with a cost for he had to be extremely careful now.  
  
Trying to be as stealthy as he could, Jinhwan pressed himself to the nearest wall in order to avoid the guards lurking about on their daily routine to ensure the palace’s safety and his own escape harder than it usually was. Ugh, how was he going to get out now? The small man exhaled in annoyance as he quickly took a turn before he could be spotted and inched closer towards his own escape route – just a bit more and he was going to reach the wall where a conveniently placed fermenting jar awaited him in order to climb up and above it although with some difficulty due to his short as hell body — but that never stopped Jinhwan from getting what he wanted. Climbing up the rather unstable jar, he soon climbed over the wall with his short limbs; luckily for him, the clothes remained clean even when he jumped off onto the other side. Well, that went better than expected – now it’s time to explore.  


  
  
Downtown was fascinating in Jinhwan’s eyes; it was bustling with life, merchants eager for you to come and buy their supply by showering other with compliments and promises of the lowest price in the market. Apparently, the crops are decent this year – not that he was too much into knowing about it but it was inevitable whenever he would hear his father and the ministers talk about politics – which he _hated_ , undoubtedly.  
  
No no no, no time to think about that now that he finally got out. Truth be told is he had another small reason as to why he wanted to visit the town centre where the tradesmen were crowded — that reason had a name. The sad part of it all? He didn’t know the name. All he knew was what he saw and that was enough to make Jinhwan crush. Yes, Kim Jinhwan was crushing on a man, a stranger which he never had spoken a word to but if you ask him they did lock eyes once or twice so he assumes that it’s a very good start.

Today was the day he was going to say hello to the guy he had been thinking about for the past couple of months he had been visiting outside the palace.  
  
First off he quickly fixed his hair – leaving most of it to fall onto his shoulders while taking the upper half and braiding it only to wrap it in a small bun and hold it together with his favorite hair pin. Yes, he was determined to get the other’s attention. Ugh, should he style his hair differently? Maybe– No, no. It was going to be okay, right? Since he was told countless times that any man would die for one look from him especially with the small heart-shaped beauty mark right under his eye – if they didn’t lie to him, that is.  
  
The thing about Jinhwan is, he had never experienced love and why would he when the palace was full of eunuchs and handmaidens, guards who were strictly instructed to keep away from the princess. Never did he feel his heart skip a bit or flutter even for a moment — until he met _him_.  
  
“There’s no need to panic.” A little pep talk wouldn’t harm anybody, he thought while making last adjustments at the rather casual hanbok he had borrowed (stolen, really) from Hayoung this morning and made sure his little coin pouch was tied under the jeogori. “You can punch a man in the face, talking to one should be easier than that.” .. Right?  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Walking down the main road, Jinhwan tried to stay focused as he kindly smiled towards the traders who attempted to lure him into buying things he definitely didn’t need. Stay focused, Kim Jinhwan. The said man braced himself as he inched closer towards the stall in which he was supposed to encounter the male but before he could reach it his body betrayed him once his eyes came across the handsome stranger, stopping instantly and turning towards the jewelry stand right beside him as if observing the items.  
  
_Nope_ , not a chance, he couldn’t do it. How could he when his heart was beating loudly in his chest while his blood instantly reached his ears. Ah, he was doomed.  
  
“Are you looking for a present?” The voice startled Jinhwan almost immediate, head turning towards the owner of the voice – a middle aged woman greeted her with a small smile and he returned it with a faint shake of his head. “I’m just looking, thank you.” Was his response and although he did try to at least look like that's what he was doing, of course his curious eyes couldn’t help but glance every now and then at the man just across the road, several stands away from him.  
  
He was probably too obvious since the same lady spoke once more. “I have the perfect thing for you.” Although Jinhwan _really_ didn’t want to avert his gaze away, he stared at her in puzzlement as she held his hand – carefully tying a bracelet to his thin wrist, chinese characters engraved to each small wooden bead. “You don’t have to do that.” It was a polite attempt at rejecting her but what caught his attention was what she send next. “It’s a buddhist bracelet from Jogyesa temple, it shall bring you fortune – to find the love you desire.” Oh. _Oh_.  
  
Now don’t get him wrong, Jinhwan didn’t believe in a specific religion – the government promoted education and science more than any religion, especially in his household. However, if buddha could help him to swoon _that_ man, sign him up right away. “Do you.. Really believe so?” Just to be sure. The woman pat his small hands in her palms, nodding in reassurance. Well, whether she was bluffing or not — fuck it, that’d be his good luck charm even if it's fake. Surprisingly, it didn’t cost a lot – another reason why it must be fake but he was desperate to find comfort in anything to help him with his cold feet.  
  
  
  
Content and collected after paying, he took in a deep breath before pressing a small kiss to the small beads around his wrist before his feet started moving on their own. Was it actually happening? Was he _actually_ going to _talk_ to him?

  
  
“Hello young lady.” An old man greeted him and Jinhwan sheepishly bowed his head with a greeting in return; the man he was so anxious to meet stood next to the aged man but the small male didn’t dare to look at him. “What can I get you?” Honey, that’s what his voice was like when he spoke, pulling Jinhwan’s attention to him in split second and their gazes met; he swore that he felt his entire body tense but his lips didn’t seem to move at all, merely staring at the handsome guy who spoke to him. “Huh?” It eventually left his couplets once he was brought back to reality a few moments later – don’t make a full of yourself, Kim Jinhwan.  
  
Clearing his throat, Jinhwan then pointed at one of the many handmade sweets – caramelized peanuts, his own personal favorite. Why did speaking seem like such a difficult task to comprehend all of a sudden? Although he tried, nothing came out and in a few moments a rather medium jute bag was reached out to him which he gladly took with a quiet mumble of ‘thank you’.  
  
Ugh, you’re pathetic, Jinhwan.  
  
However the greatest thing happened — when Jinhwan handed the man the money, their hands _brushed_ against one another’s. They made physical contact. Bless buddha and his carving on wood.  
  
“What a beauitful lady you are–” Apparently, elder people seemed to like Jinhwan a lot today. “Don’t you think so, Hanbin?” Of course, Jinhwan thanked him for the compliment but in his head the only thing that processed at that moment was – Hanbin.  
  
  
_Hanbin._  
  
  
The man’s name is _Hanbin_ , he finally got the stranger’s name and the best thing of it all?  
  
  
“Yes, she is.”  
  
  
_Thank you buddha._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The chapter is a bit boring because I'm trying to introduce the characters, so bear with me hah.  
> Didn't go exactly as planned but it's still good, next chapter Junhoe and Bobby will join the party. always open to hear feedback, hope you enjoyed! ♥

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know if it's going to be a one-shot or chaptered, no idea which couple I'm going for. Basically, a rollercoaster.


End file.
